Audiometric Characteristics in Patients With Noise-Induced Hearing Loss After Sodium Enoxaparin Treatment

OBJECTIVES:The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of sodium enoxaparin treatment on patients with noise-induced hearing loss. METHODS: Sixty patients with noise-induced hearing loss were included and randomly divided into two numerically equal groups. Group A underwent therapy with sodium enoxaparin for 10 days, followed by an additional 10 days of treatment after 10 days of no treatment. Group B received placebo as a control. Before treatment, at the end of treatment, and 2 months after the end of treatment, all patients underwent evaluation by laboratory tests, pure tone audiometry, transient evoked otoacoustic emissions (TEOAEs) testing, distortion product otoacoustic emissions (DPOAEs) testing, and auditory brain stem response testing. RESULTS: In contrast to group B, at the end of the treatment in group A pure tone audiometry showed a significant (p < 0.05) improvement of the audiometric thresholds at 0.5, 1, 2, 4, and 8 kHz. Depending on the air and bone conduction thresholds, TEOAEs and DPOAEs, which had previously been absent, were evoked at the frequencies examined. These improvements were confirmed at last follow-up. We found no significant differences in auditory brain stem responses or laboratory results. CONCLUSIONS: These preliminary data encourage further studies to collect additional evidence on the effect of sodium enoxaparin in preventing the development of noise-induced hearing loss

Septal Nasal Extramedullary Plasmacytoma: A Rare Tumor in an Unusual Area

We present an extreme rare case of extramedullary nasal plasmacitoma that arise from nasal septum. The mass surgically removed was analyzed by a pathologist who diagnosed an extramedullary nasal plasmacytoma. The patient did not present systemic involvement. A short cycle of radiotherapy was performed after the surgery. At 9-month follow-up, the patient is recurrence free

Surgical management of pleomorphic adenoma of parotid gland in elderly patients: Role of morphological features.

The neoplasms of the salivary glands account for 2% of head and neck tumors and the most common form is the Pleomorphic Adenoma (PA). Parotid gland is affected from 80% to 90% of cases. In elderly this tumors occurs mostly in females. These benign tumors are composed of epithelial and myoepithelial cells that are arranged with various morphological patterns and subtypes. The classification of these tumors is also based on the amount and nature of the stroma. In literature there is a almost complete consensus that, in the major salivary glands, PAs are enclosed by a layer of fibrous tissue often called "capsule" but there is disagreement about the form, extention and thickness of this layer. The treatment is surgical and there are two main different surgical approaches: an enucleation (local dissection) or so-called subtotal superficial parotidectomy and lateral or superficial total parotidectomy. Histopathological characteristics of PAs especially of capsular alterations such as thin capsule areas, capsule-free regions, capsule penetration, satellite nodules and pseudopodia in the different subtypes are important for the choice of surgical treatment and the first explanation for tumor recurrence. In our study we describe a morphological features of 84 cases of pleomorphic adenoma of parotid gland from elderly patients treated by a surgical "enucleation like" method called nucleoresection

Expression of Matrix Metalloproteinases and Their Tissue Inhibitors in Chronic Rhinosinusitis With Nasal Polyps: Etiopathogenesis and Recurrence:

Chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps is a multifactorial disease of the nasal and paranasal sinus mucosa and it includes, as comorbidities, anatomic and morphologic alterations, allergic rhinitis, and immunologic diseases. We investigated matrix metalloproteinases (MMP-2, MMP-7, and MMP-9) and their tissue inhibitors (TIMP-1 and TIMP-2) concentration in different etiopathogenetical groups of patients with nasal polyposis (NP) in relation to recurrence after sinonasal surgery. The study group consisted of 45 patients with NP (those with allergic rhinitis, nonallergic rhinitis and asthma or nonallergic rhinitis, and obstruction of osteomeatal complex [OMC]) who underwent endonasal sinus surgery. We also collected 10 patients who underwent septoplasty as control. Immunohistochemistry of nasal mucosa fragments, Western blotting, and polymerase chain reaction analysis showed increased MMPs levels (MMP-9 more than MMP-2 and MMP-7) and decreased tissue inhibitors of MMPs levels (TIMP-1 less than TIMP-2), in patients with chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps compared with control group, in particular in patients with nonallergic rhinitis and asthma compared to those with allergic rhinitis and nonallergic rhinitis and obstruction of OMC. We observed a higher risk of recurrence in patients with nonallergic rhinitis and asthma than in those with allergic rhinitis and nonallergic rhinitis and obstruction of OMC after 36 months from surgery. In this research, we evaluated pathogenesis of NP related to MMPs and their inhibitors concentrations in polypoid tissue

Comparison of different oval window sealing materials in stapes surgery: systematic review and meta-analysis

To compare the efficacy and safety characteristics of different materials used for oval window sealing during stapedotomy

The tosca registry: an ongoing, observational, multicenter registry for chronic heart failure

The ageing of the population in western countries, the continuous increase of the prevalence of chronic diseases, the frequent coexistence of several morbid conditions (comorbidity) requires health professionals and Institutions to face difficult challenges, including increasing costs, need for more effective and sustainable therapies, and organizational issues. The European Innovation Partnership on Active and Healthy Ageing aims at enabling European citizens to lead healthy, active and independent lives while ageing. We herein discuss some key concepts bearing a special significance in the light of the Partnership aims, and present research and educational projects active in our local environment. Among these, the multicentre project TOSCA (Trattamento Ormonale nello Scompenso CArdiaco) that, although primarily focused on the understanding of the interactions between hormones and chronic heart failure (CHF), is also aimed at developing more effective models of clinical care. We provide the scientific background and current stage of the project. In the context of a growing complexity of the patients’ clinical management, the polipharmacy is a new arising challenge for clinicians, bearing direct economic, organizational and clinical implications. A better understanding, characterization and management of this issue represent an additional target of the TOSCA network